On the eve of his national television debut....I know. We're at least a year away from choosing a presidential nominee. Nobody who's running for the highest office in the land will entertain this particular topic for fear of sounding cocky and/or presumptuous. And, in Sen. Webb's case, he just got to Washington a few weeks ago.
Now, we here at Raising Kaine need no convincing. We understand that Jim Webb has more guts and integrity than every other politician put together (And that Jim Webb has two speeds. Walk and Kill. Grrrrrrr). But, for the uninitiated, allow me to explain that an ascension of this manner is really not that unusual. In fact, if you look at the bio of one of the greatest figures in American history, Teddy Roosevelt, the similarities are downright eerie.
Does serving only two years as a Senator not sound that impressive? Well, Teddy joined the McKinley presidential ticket in 1900 after being elected Governor of New York in 1898. Roosevelt took the oath of office in September 1901 after McKinley was assassinated (And he didn't put his hand on the bible Virgil Goode! Who would've thunk? The atheists didn't take over!).
Prior to that, TR was Assistant Secretary of the Navy, basically running the Department while Navy Secretary John Long was inactive for a time. Because of this, Roosevelt is frequently referred to as a former Secretary of the Navy. Sen. Webb was, of course, a former Navy Secretary himself.
Teddy Roosevelt also was a member of the famed Rough Riders during the Spanish American War. Obviously Sen. Webb's accomplishments during his time in the Marine Corps speak for themselves.
And let's not forget that Teddy Roosevelt offically left the Republican Party after his chosen successor, William Howard Taft, took the party in a different direction. In 1912 he ran as a third party Progressive ("Bull Moose") candidate against both Taft and Woodrow Wilson. I think we can all relate to a Progressive and economic pouplist who switched parties after becoming disillusioned with the Republican Party, can't we?
By the way, one of Teddy's favorite hobbies? Boxing. He was a boxer while at Harvard University, and actually kept a boxing ring in the White House. Does anybody want to guess who was a varsity boxer at the Naval Academy years ago? Yeah, Jim Webb and Ollie North traded jabs while at Annapolis during the late 1960s.
Now, in fairness, Roosevelt did have a distinguished record in New York state politics prior to joining the Navy Department. But nobody wants to give Senator Obama any credit for the years he served in the Illinois Senate, so why should we cut Teddy a break on that score?
We also know that following in Roosevelt's footsteps is a proven winning formula. T.R.'s cousin Franklin not only capitalized on his famous last name; his political career was a carbon copy of Theodore's. In fact, FDR ran for Vice President once before serving in a statewide elective office. As Assistant Navy Secretary he ran for Senate, lost, then ran for Vice President in 1920. FDR wasn't elected Governor until 1928.
Ideally I think Webb would be best as a running mate for Clinton, Richardson or Obama. The only reason I say this is because, with such a diverse field of presidential candidates, it would be kind of a let down for yet another ticket to feature two white men. I would be irate if the GOP beat us to the punch and elected either a woman or minority President or Vice-President before the Democrats did. And I have a feeling others would too.
So that's my argument and I'm sticking with it. By Tuesday night at @10pm, cyberspace will be abuzz over Webb's smackdown of Chimpy McSmirk's SOTU address.
I know it's a bit of a longshot...but what if I told you a year ago that James Webb would be a U.S. Senator and the only Virginian running for President would be Jim Gilmore? You'd probably punch me in the face and ask who sold me the drugs (and no, you can't have any).
I think there's a good chance he could be around well past 2012.
I do see some parallels with TR (For what it's worth, Webb had a much more distinguished military career). I also think he would help to sell the presidential candidate in '08. Still I think he can do Virginia and the U.S. a lot more good as a Senator--at least for now. The last thing he needs to do is spend 5 months campaigning in 2008.
(Is that the law in Virginia? I'm not 100% sure.)
Still, I think it's important for Webb to give his full attention to the Senate duties. That's where he's most needed.
As a side note, I think, tempermentally, Webb would not be a good VP. He's said before that he doesn't "wear the bridle well." And I doubt any of the prospective nominees will be looking for a Cheney like co-regent--odds are they'll want a more traditional Veep.
I think Webb can do a lot of good simply lobbying for the party nominee on the campaign trail as a Virginia Senator.
Mark Warner on the other hand would be pretty close to a perfect fit. He would have about the same national name recognition as Webb does at this point, and his presence on the ticket alone would likely swing Virginia into the "D" column. In Virginia, Mark Warner still has a lot more cross-over appeal than Jim Webb.
Steve Jarding as Senator is genius.
Question: Can make be the VP nominee and still run for Senate against John Warner and when he wins both, then Kaine can appoint the senator from VA?
I love me some Mark Warner. My concern is that he doesn't fit the mold of a runningmate. A Governor at the top of a ticket with an experienced Washington insider at the no. 2 slot is far and away the most successful combination. Carter/Mondale, Reagan/Bush, Clinton/Gore, Bush/Cheney, Roosevelt/Garner.
Spiro Agnew was elected VP after being Governor for only two years, so there is some precedent at least.
Lieberman was a senator while running for Vp and did not give up his seat, then returned when he lost the election. But Have never heard of running for 2 offices in the same election year.
As far as Clinton, I do not believe she has to follow that mold. Should she win the nomination, I still believe people will look at wether they want Bill in the White House with a behind the scenes voice. They will not care who is running for VP. Of course when it comes to 2012, people will care, just because that person may become the new Presidential nominee.
Webb's strength is that he will be a maverick who will speak truth to power (yes, I know that's a cliche line - but in this case, it's true). He would not make a good VP. Vice presidents have to be loyal, hew to the administration line, and carry water for the party and the president he serves. That's just not Jim Webb.
He could probably do it. As a former military man, he has probably had to follow orders without questioning them before. But that was years ago and in a wartime setting where it made sense. To question your commander could put your life and your fellow soldiers' lives in danger.
But as a civilian, Webb is fiercely independent. The cost of giving up that independence would be soul wrenching for him. And he should play to his real strength, which is his outspokeness. His kind of courage is rare enough. Sticking him in a job where it would have to be squelched would be counterproductive.
On the other hand, Mark Warner is a consumate and skilled politician of the old statesmanlike school. He is diplomatic, can broker compromises where both sides truly come away with something of value - that is he can create win-win situations.
His is a different set of skills and a different set of strengths than Jim Webb's but they are no less valuable. Warner's political skills are just as important to governing as Webb's are, but they are different. Webb is suited to the Senate or even someday the presidency. But not the vice presidency.
Warner, on the other hand, could be a real leader in the Senate, should he go that route. He could be a behind the scenes player as vice president, and he could be a president too, albeit his governing style would be very different from Jim Webb's.
On the positive side there is what you point out. Webb's got the moral character we all want, he's got the shine of a political outsider (which has a great appeal to many political cynics), he's an up and coming star given his underdog victory, in the first weeks he's already done as much as his predecessor, and so on.
On the flip:
1. Webb wasn't that great of a campaigner. Don't get me wrong, he wasn't bad - he just wasn't good. And I got the feeling that it wasn't just due to lack of experience. It seems that leadership and action are Webb's strong suits and campaigning is not. Any run for President, or a supporting role as Vice-President, will require a strong campaigner.
2. His lack of political experience. As you point out, TR was a success with his limited background and it's certainly possible Webb could be as well. But however great the TR story is, we're talking about two different people living to two different times. We should give Webb some time to define himself as a politician before we project too much of what we want him to be. Time and experience are important here.
3. I, for one, would like him as my Senator for a while. Six months ago we were bustin' on Allen for his plans to run for President and ditch Virginia after two years of his Senate term. While Webb running for VP is not exactly the same thing, it's close enough in my book. Lets let Webb represent us for a while (i.e. his term) before pushing him for something else.
Especially in 2008.
Brian Schweitzer the Governor of Montana (who just delivered the Democratic Radio Address over the weekend) is another name everyone keeps talking about for 2008.
I mean these guys just were elected, can't they do the job they were elected for. This is especially important in the concept of a 50-state strategy.
Both Schweitzer and Webb hail from red states. They would to their constituents a better service, the country, and our party if they help turn their states blue.
We need a party that is being built from the ground up. Senator Webb who is my hero in so many ways. Is doing and will do what's best for Virginia and America. But, he was elected to the United States Senate. He hasn't even been there a whole month and people are writing these posts.
I mean, come one. Be realistic.
It's flattering to him I am sure to see this, but we need him in the U.S. Senate. Virginia needs a strong voice fighting for us.
We have a crowd of candidates in 2008 for the top and bottom of the ticket. They are great Democrats.s
Let Jim Webb be our Senator for a little while.
My hope:
Webb stays senator
M. Warner becomes gov 09' (or becomes next JR senator 08')
Al Gore joins the race in 8 months and sweeping the wannabes off the front page & back to their respective jobs. Gore/? 08
Now on a personal note, I took time out of life to get rid of Allen, a lot of people did, you'd be playing with what people accomplished. People who worked hard. Webb is a reformer, a voice in the Senate, he's not a man in a hurry. And Obamamizing him, I think does a big disservice for the cause he represents.
Let's keep Webb where he can make a difference-IN THE SENATE.